Sir Enrique d'al Hunter
Introduction Lord Sir Enrique Friedrich Ludovico d'al Torringen ae Hunter (born 577OIE) is the 12th and last Viscount of Wolfswood sworn to the Candlesses of Wulfram and a banecaster of the 9th calibre. He was born to House Hunter of Wolfswood, both of his family's bloodline can trace their way back to the days of Old Octavia, where both House Hunter and House Torringen were renowned vassal lords to House Candless of Wulfram. It was said by some that his birth will signify a man of great talents and virtues of the era. Biography His Early Years He was sent to serve in the court of the Duke of Wulfram at the age of six. During his early years he was often accounted as a person of bravery and being fearless who has aggressive manners in a fight, which in his later military career would proved to be useful. Joining the army By the time when he was 16 years old, he joined up the elite Aetorian Grenadier Guards and started off his military career, as his display of aggressive manners were known within the army, he and his brother were taken as squires by Lord Winthrop d'al Hartigan's father within the Order of Saint Jerome. Under the teachings of the late Viscount of Hugh (Hartigan's father), he earned his golden spurs and became a fully fledged knight of Saint Jerome. The Dozen Year War Sir Enrique by the time when the war broke out has become a captain commanding a company of Grenadiers of the 2nd Battalion and a Knight-Captain of Saint Jerome, being posted to defend the sectors along the River Kharan, which no doubt had his aggressive tactics to be wasted, however even he is on the defense, his aggressive manners were able to bring him several minor and major victories with the odds against him, by 603 he was promoted Major of the regiment. With the war continue, he slowly made his way up the ranks until he became the Lt.-colonel of the 2nd Battalion of the Aetorian Grenadier Guards in 606OIE. Blogia and Death By the time when he became the Lt.-colonel of the Grenadiers, his military career is about to came to an end as well as his life. During the disastrous blunder at Blogia, when Havenport who has assumed command of the army when Wulfram who scrambled to his wounds ordered a fighting retreat, Wolfswood's battalion, under the command of the Earl of Castermaine's brigade was placed at the furthest front and dead centre of the whole line. It was said that due to Castermaine who was unwilling to withdraw most the artillery under his command as he wished to wreck the last havoc upon the enemy and was about to face destruction caused Wolfswood's life as well as his whole command: Wolfswood on the other hand, by most accounts of the army saw the danger post towards the King's Grand Battery, as his usual manner: being fearless and aggressive in the fight, ignored any orders to be given and dived deep into the fighting at the centre of the enemy, leading his entire battalion of Grenadiers into the heart of the enemy position and loss all contacts from the main army, forming the battalion into a square, mounting a heroic but doomed rearguard at the centre of the battlefield and fended off the enemy for half an hour, all sides being under heavy assaults by Antari levies in the whole process, but in doing so he was able to buy Castermaine the time he required to lumber up the artillery so close to the enemy's grasp if they are to be evacuated at the final moment. By the time when the army was starting to retreat in good order, his battalion was already seconds away from annihilation: of the 615 men and 28 officers presented on that day, only 14 men and 2 officers were still fighting, more than 620 men and officers were killed, wounded or missing. It was at this moment where Wolfswood (Some of his supporters' accounts) ordered the remnants of the battalion to retreat back to the mainline with the King's Colour (which will put the regiment's honour in utter shame if they ever loss it to the enemy) while he decided to stay behind with his dead Grenadiers until he falls. He died at the age of 30, his body was never found afterwards. Rumours and criticism Up to now, no one was quite sure the reason why he ordered that sudden attack deep into the enemy line when he could have chosen another approach of attack in order to save the guns, while some put the blame on Castermaine on not withdrawing the guns from the battle which had caused Wolfswood's life and all the battle-hardened Grenadiers under his command. Another account is that no one was really sure of the fate of Wolfswood: whether he ordered his men to retreat while he stayed behind or whether his men in the end had faltered due to heavy losses and retreated with him still being at the furthest front fighting. Legacy The loss of Wolfswood was a crippling blow to both the army and to the Tierran peerage, for the Wolfswoods even after Wulfram was united under the Tierran crown, had served House Rendower without much flaws and with great devotion and loyalty (by most accounts of Wolfwood's allies), His younger brother: Sir Fellippe d'al Hunter was also killed in one of the many skirmishes before Blogia. As Wolfswood himself was never married before the war started and had never get the chance to find a lady of the blood to marry, the line of House Hunter died with him. To the army, it was a devastating loss as by all the military accounts that were known, Wolfswood was a daring and intelligent commander who's skills in offensive were the key to his many successes, with his loss the army had loss a very valuable and fearless commander who will commit himself with everything he had in a fight. Up to now, his mother: the Dowager Viscountess of Wolfswood is making her great efforts to do one thing that will make sure that her son's family name even though with the loss of the bloodline would become a legend: To have Lt.-colonel Hunter to be Sainted as a Saint of the Red.....